Method and system for data communication using a body

ABSTRACT

A portable device for data communication using a body as a conductor to transmit data to a receiver, the portable device includes a data receiving unit to receive data, a controller unit to control processing of data to be transmitted, a current limiting circuit to limit a current of a signal corresponding to the data to be transmitted to a predetermined value, and transmitting electrodes connected to the current limiting circuit and to contact the body to transmit the signal having the current of predetermined value to the receiver.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application is a continuation-in-part application which claims thebenefit under 35 U.S.C. § 120 of a U.S. patent application Ser. No.10/543,143 filed on Jul. 22, 2005, which claims the benefit under 35U.S.C. § 119(a) of a Korean Patent Application No. 10-2003-0005059,filed on Jan. 25, 2003 in the Korean Intellectual Property Office. Theentire disclosures of the related applications are hereby incorporatedby reference.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The following description relates to a method and system for datacommunication with respect to a body, and to transmitting data from asensor placed in the human body to the outside of the human body tocollect information, wherein a current generated from the sensor flowsthrough the human body acting as a conductor to transmit the data.

BACKGROUND

Various sensors for collecting information, for example, medicalinformation in the human body have been developed and used. In additionto a technique for collecting information in the human body, a techniquefor transmitting the collected information to the outside of the humanbody is important.

A communication cable method is one of general data transmittingmethods. A communication cable method is applied to, for example, anendoscope which is developed for observing the stomach and theintestines. In the communication cable method, a cable made of aconducting wire or an optic fiber is inserted into the human bodythrough a throat of a patient. While the communication cable method hashigh reliability and high data quality, it may cause severe pain to thepatient.

In order to solve the above-mentioned problem, Given Imaging LTD. inIsrael has developed a capsule type endoscope called M2A. When a patientswallows the capsule type endoscope in a form of a tablet, video data inthe human body photographed by a camera of the endoscope are transmittedto an external-receiving unit, and displayed in a monitor.

However, in the capsule type endoscope, since a radio wave is used totransmit a signal, power consumption is large, an operation time isshort, and the receiving sensitivity is deteriorated due to interferenceof various electric waves from the outside of the human body. Inaddition, radio-transmitting apparatus such as a converter circuit forconverting a video signal into a high frequency signal and an antennafor signal transmission, etc. may be required. Accordingly, the volumeand production cost may be increased. Also, the high frequency may beharmful to the human body.

SUMMARY

Accordingly, according to an aspect, there is provided a method andsystem for data communication with respect to the human in which acurrent generated flows through the human body to transmit data to theoutside of the human body.

According to another aspect, there is provided a portable device fordata communication using a body as a conductor to transmit data to areceiver, the portable device comprising a data receiving unit toreceive data, a controller unit to control processing of data to betransmitted, a current limiting circuit to limit a current of a signalcorresponding to the data to be transmitted to a predetermined value,and transmitting electrodes connected to the current limiting circuitand to contact the body to transmit the signal having the current ofpredetermined value to the receiver.

The signal may be transmitted by controlling a voltage polarity of thetransmitting electrodes.

The data receiving unit may comprise a lighting device and a lens, andthe portable device may be a capsule type endoscope further comprising apixel array to capture image data through the lens, a read circuit tofetch signals of the pixel array, a coding circuit to code an outputsignal of the read circuit, a switching circuit connected to the currentlimiting circuit to transmit a signal coded in the coding circuitthrough the transmitting electrodes, an oscillating circuit to determinean operational frequency, and a power source.

The portable device may further comprise a data storage to store thedata received, an interfacing unit to interface with a user, and amodulator for modulating a signal corresponding to the data stored inthe data storage, decoded by the controller unit, wherein the currentlimiting circuit limits a current of the modulated signal to thepredetermined value.

The data stored in the data storage may be video and/or audio data, andthe portable device may be one of a sound player, an MP3 player, acellular phone, a portable media player, and a navigation device.

The portable device may further comprise a display unit to displaycontent corresponding to the data stored in the data storage, a soundoutput unit to convert the signal decoded by the controller unit to ananalog signal, and a power source, wherein the data receiving unitcomprises a universal serial bus controller and a universal serial busconnector to receive the data.

Each of the transmitting electrodes may be disposed on a rear surface ofthe portable device in the form of a clip, an ‘L’ shaped electrode, or acurved surfaced electrode.

The portable device may further comprise a data storage to store thedata received, wherein the data stored in the data storage correspondsto an electronic key, and the transmitting electrodes transmits a signalcorresponding to the electronic key having a current of thepredetermined value to gain access controlled by the receiver.

The portable device may further comprise an encryption unit to encryptthe electronic key, an encoding unit to encode the encrypted electronickey, and a switching circuit to modulate the encoded electronic key tooutput to the current limiting circuit.

The body may be a human body.

According to still another aspect, there is provided a portable devicefor data communication using a body as a conductor to transmit data to areceiver, the portable device comprising a controller unit to controlprocessing of data to be transmitted, a current limiting circuit tolimit a current of a signal corresponding to the data to be transmittedto a predetermined value, and transmitting electrodes connected to thecurrent limiting circuit and contacted with the body to generateelectric potential difference therebetween, so that the signal havingthe current of predetermined value flows from the transmitting electrodehaving higher electric potential through the body to the receiver andsinks to the transmitting electrode having lower electric potential.

The number of the transmitting electrodes may be at least two.

The portable device may further comprise a data storage to store thedata, and an interfacing unit to interface with a user.

According to still another aspect, there is provided a receiver forreceiving data communicated using a body as a conductor to transmit thedate, the receiver comprising receiving electrodes to contact the bodyto receive a signal corresponding to the data, and a signal processor toprocess the signal received through the receiving electrodes, whereinthe signal has a current defined to a predetermined value.

The receiver may be a peripheral device to output a reproduction signalcorresponding to video and/or audio data, the processed signal maycorrespond to an output obtained from reproducing the video and/or audiodata, and the peripheral device may further comprise an output unit tooutput the signal from the signal processor.

The peripheral device may be one of a headset, an earset, an earphone, avisual visor, and a combination thereof.

The output unit may comprises at least one of a sound outputting unit tooutput sound corresponding to the signal, and a display unit to outputan image corresponding to the signal.

The signal processor may comprise an amplifier to amplify the signalreceived through the receiving electrodes, a bandwidth pass filter toextract a baseband signal from the amplified signal, a comparator toconvert the baseband signal to a signal of a predetermined voltage, anda controller unit to divide the converted signal and output the dividedsignals to the output unit.

The data may correspond to an electronic key, and the receiver mayfurther comprise a controller to control access based on the signalreceived through the receiving electrodes. The signal processorcomprises an amplifier to amplify the signal received through thereceiving electrodes, a bandwidth pass filter to convert the amplifiedsignal to a baseband signal, a comparator to convert the baseband signalto a signal of a predetermined voltage, a decoding unit to decode thesignal of a predetermined voltage, and a decrypting unit to decrypt thedecoded signal to output to the controller.

According to still another aspect, there is provided a method ofcommunicating data wirelessly using a body as a conductor to transmitthe data from a portable device to a receiver, the method comprisinggenerating a signal corresponding to data to be transmitted, limiting acurrent of the signal corresponding to the data to be transmitted to apredetermined value, and transmitting the signal having the current ofpredetermined value to the receiver through transmitting electrodes ofthe portable device, where the transmitting electrodes contact the bodyand the body contacts receiving electrodes of the receiver.

The transmitting of the signal may comprise controlling a voltagepolarity of the transmitting electrodes to transmit the signal.

The data to be transmitted may be one of video and/or audio data and anelectronic key, and the portable device may be one of a sound player, anMP3 player, a cellular phone, a portable media player, a navigationdevice, and an access requesting device.

According to still another aspect, there is provided a method ofcommunicating data wirelessly using a body as a conductor to transmitthe data from a portable device to a receiver, the method comprisingcontrolling transmitting electrodes of the portable device to generateelectric potential difference between the transmitting electrodesaccording to the data to be transmitted, wherein the transmittingelectrodes contact the body and the body contacts receiving electrodesof the receiver, limiting a current of the transmitting electrodes to apredetermined value, and supplying the current from the transmittingelectrode having higher electric potential to the body so that thecurrent flows in form of digital through the surface of the body to thereceiving electrodes of the receiver and sinks to the transmittingelectrode having lower electric potential.

The controlling of the transmitting electrodes may allow a voltagepolarity of the transmitting electrodes to be changed according to thedata to be transmitted.

Other features will become apparent to those skilled in the art from thefollowing detailed description, which, taken in conjunction with theattached drawings, discloses exemplary embodiments of the invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a method for data communication withrespect to the human body in accordance with an exemplary embodiment.

FIGS. 2 a through 2 d are perspective views illustrating a transmittingelectrode installed to a surface of a sensor used in a system for datacommunication with respect to the human body, in accordance withexemplary embodiments.

FIG. 3 is a sectional view illustrating a sensor of a system for datacommunication with respect to the human body in accordance with anexemplary embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a circuit diagram illustrating an internal construction of aCMOS image sensor of a sensor according to an exemplary embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating a method for data communication withrespect to the human body in accordance with an exemplary embodiment.

FIGS. 6 a through 6 c are perspective views illustrating a portabledevice to which a method for data communication with respect to thehuman body is applied, in accordance with exemplary embodiments.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of a peripheral device to which a methodfor data communication with respect to the human body is applied inaccordance with an exemplary embodiment.

FIG. 8 is a block diagram illustrating an internal construction of theportable device of FIG. 6 according to an exemplary embodiment.

FIG. 9 is a block diagram illustrating an internal construction of theperipheral device of FIG. 7 according to an exemplary embodiment.

FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating a method for data communication withrespect to the human body in accordance with an exemplary embodiment.

FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating an implementation of the embodiment ofFIG. 10 according to an exemplary embodiment.

Throughout the drawings and the detailed description, the same drawingreference numerals will be understood to refer to the same elements,features, and structures.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The following detailed description is provided to assist the reader ingaining a comprehensive understanding of the methods, apparatuses and/orsystems described herein. Accordingly, various changes, modifications,and equivalents of the systems, apparatuses and/or methods describedherein will be suggested to those of ordinary skill in the art. Also,descriptions of well-known functions and constructions are omitted toincrease clarity and conciseness.

FIG. 1 illustrates a method and a system for data communication withrespect to the human body in accordance with an exemplary embodiment. Asdepicted in FIG. 1, a sensor 10 placed inside the human body 1, forexample, in the digestive organs, transmits information of the inside ofthe human body 1 to a receiver 20 installed on a surface of the humanbody through the human body 2.

With reference to FIG. 1, a method for data communication in the humanbody capable of transmitting a signal from the sensor 10 inside thehuman body 1 to the receiver 20 placed in the outside of the human bodywill be described. Various information (for example, pictures of theinside of the body, PH, temperature or electric impedance, etc.)collected by the sensor 10 is converted into an electric signal by asignal processing circuit (not shown) of the sensor 10 and is applied totransmitting electrodes 11 through an output line of the signalprocessing circuit, and accordingly, electric potential differenceoccurs between the transmitting electrodes 11. Because the transmittingelectrodes 11 are contacted to the inside of the human body 1 (it iselectrically connected with the human body through, for example, bodyfluids in the digestive organs), by electric potential differencebetween the two transmitting electrodes 11, a current 3 flows throughthe human body 2. The current 3 flows from the transmitting electrodehaving a higher electric potential through the surface of the human bodyback into the inside of the human body 1 and is sunken to thetransmitting electrode having a lower electric potential. Herein, thecurrent flowing through the surface of the human body induces a voltagebetween two receiving electrodes 21, and accordingly, a signaltransmitted from the sensor 10 placed in the human body 1 may be sensedby the receiver 20 outside of the human body. The receiver 20 restores avideo signal by processing the received signal, and displays it on amonitor or stores it in a memory.

FIGS. 2 a through 2 d illustrate several exemplary embodiments of thetransmitting electrodes 11 installed on a surface of the sensor 10 ofthe system for data communication in the human body. For example, on thesurface of the sensor 10, two metal plates, namely, two transmittingelectrodes are formed, which are respectively connected to outlines of asignal processing circuit (not shown) of the sensor 10.

Where the two transmitting electrodes are electrically isolated andseparated from each other sufficiently, the transmitting electrodes maybe formed at any position of the surface of the sensor 10. Herein,according to an aspect, the transmitting electrodes may have asensor-covering shape, namely, a three-dimensionally curved shape inorder to be easily contacted with the inside of the human body. It isunderstood that the sensor 10 may have other shapes in addition to theshape shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 a-2 d.

In FIG. 2 a, a transmitting electrode comprises a first electrode and asecond electrode respectively surrounding the both ends of the sensor.In FIG. 2 b, a transmitting electrode comprises a first electrodesurrounding an end of the sensor and a second electrode covering theother end of the sensor having a band-shape. In FIG. 2 c, a transmittingelectrode comprises a first electrode and a second electroderespectively covering both ends of the sensor having a band-shape. InFIG. 2 d, a transmitting electrode comprises a first electrode and asecond electrode symmetrically formed along a longer axis of the sensor.

Because the transmitting electrodes are exposed to the inside of thehuman body, it may be made of material having good resistance againstcorrosion, due to a reactive material such as a digestive fluid, etc.,and also harmless to the human body. According to an aspect, SUS316L orgold may be used for the transmitting electrodes. According to anaspect, in order to isolate the transmitting electrodes formed on thesurface of the sensor, electrically, the surface of the sensor may be anonconductor harmless to the human body. For example, peek, polyethyleneor polypropylene in a plastic group may be used as a nonconductorharmless to the human body. According to another aspect, parylene may becoated onto the surface of the sensor made of peek, polyethylene orpolypropylene.

FIG. 3 illustrates an internal structure of a capsule type endoscopeused as a sensor in accordance with an exemplary embodiment. Referringto FIG. 3, the capsule type endoscope may have a diameter of 10 mm and alength of 20 mm. A light receiving window 17 having a dome shape isformed in an end of a housing forming an external shape of the capsuletype endoscope, and a rectangular container 18 is formed in the otherend of the housing. Accordingly, the capsule type endoscope has a bulletshape.

In the capsule type endoscope, the light receiving window 17 whichpasses light is made of a nonconductor harmless to the human body. Thecontainer 18 which contains several devices also is made of anonconductor harmless to the human body. The light receiving window 17and the container 18 are sealed so that infiltration of a digestivefluid, etc. into the capsule type endoscope may be prevented and thatleakage of substances in the capsule type endoscope into the human bodymay be avoided.

As depicted in FIG. 3, the capsule type endoscope comprises a lightingdevice 12, a lens 13, an image sensor 14, such as a CMOS image sensor, abattery 15, and transmitting electrodes 11 a and 11 b electricallyisolated-formed on a surface of the container 18.

The lens 13 is arranged behind the light receiving window 17, and theCMOS image sensor 14 in which various circuits are integrated isarranged behind the lens 13. A distance between the lens 13 and the CMOSimage sensor 14 is adjusted so as to focus light incident through thelight receiving window 17 on a surface of the CMOS image sensor 14. Forexample, around the lens 13 and the CMOS image sensor 14, a plurality oflighting devices 12 may be arranged in a donut-shape. According to anaspect, four light emitting diodes (LEDs) may be used for the lightingdevices 12. Non-reflection coating may be provided on inner and outersurfaces of the light receiving window 17 so that light irradiated fromthe lighting devices 12 may pass through the light receiving window 17and illuminate an object. The battery 15 provided as a power supply maybe arranged behind the CMOS image sensor 14. According to an aspect, asilver oxide battery having an even discharge voltage and causing littleor no harm to the human body may be used as the battery 15.

An operation of the capsule type endoscope will be described. Where thelighting devices 12 irradiate a light, the CMOS image sensor 14 capturesan image of an object through the lens 13. The CMOS image sensor 14processes the captured video signal through various internal circuitsand applies the signal to the transmitting electrodes respectivelyconnected to two output lines 16. Accordingly, receiving electrodesplaced outside of the human body may sense the signal, as describedabove.

FIG. 4 illustrates an image sensor, for example, the CMOS image sensor14 of the capsule type endoscope shown in FIG. 3.

As depicted in FIG. 4, the CMOS image sensor 14 comprises a pixel array100 for capturing and storing a video signal, a read circuit 110 forfetching a signal of each pixel, for example, sequentially, a codingcircuit 120 for coding an output signal of the read circuit 110, aswitching circuit 130 for transmitting a signal coded in the codingcircuit 120 through the two output lines 16 a and 16 b, a currentlimiting circuit 140 for adjusting a current value so as to preventflowing of a current causing damage to the human body, a control circuit150 for controlling the signal processing and the operation of thelighting device 12, and an oscillating circuit 160 for determining anoperational frequency.

According to an aspect, the pixel array 100 (for example, of 320×240pixels) may capture and store video signals of high resolution. The readcircuit 110 processes the stored video signals sequentially as a frameor more per 1 sec. Accordingly, there may not be a need to have a memorydisadvantageous in the cost and volume aspects. According to anotheraspect, the control circuit 150 determines brightness inside the humanbody based on brightness of light incident to the pixel array 100 andcontrols the lighting device 12 to operate variably for, for example,5˜200 msec. The video signals are captured by the pixel array 100 duringthat time. Accordingly, each video frame may be instantly captured, andthe brightness thereof may be improved. A PSK method that is simple andhas strong tolerance against noise may be used in encoding.

Where the signal transmitted from the coding circuit 120 is “1”, theswitching circuit 130 applies a +voltage to the first output line 16 aand grounds the second output line 16 b. Where the signal transmittedfrom the coding circuit 120 is “0”, the switching circuit 130 groundsthe first output line 16 a and applies a +voltage to the second outputline 16 b. Accordingly, since a signal is transmitted using the voltagepolarity and not the voltage size, it may be stronger to noise.

The current limiting circuit 140 may serve to prevent a current of morethan 5 mA from flowing through the human body. According to an aspect,the current limiting circuit 140 is implemented by serially connectingresistors to the two output lines 16 a and 16 b of the switching circuit130 respectively. For example, where a power voltage is 3V, the currentlimiting circuit 140 comprises resistors of 300 ohms serially connectedto the two output lines respectively. In this case, although thetransmitting electrode 11 a and 11 b has a substantial short circuitbecause of very small resistance of the human body, current flowingthrough the human body does not exceed 5 mA. In addition, by connectinga capacitor to each resistance in parallel, it is possible to remove ahigh frequency component of the signal transmitted to the human body andperform electric matching with the human body, so thatsignal-transmitting performance may be improved.

The signal passing the current limiting circuit 140 is applied to thetwo transmitting electrodes 11 a and 11 b and is transmitted to theoutside of the human body through the human body. In a conventionalfrequency communication method, a high frequency signal of severalhundred MHz may be required, however, according to an exemplaryembodiment, a video signal captured by the capsule type endoscope may betransmitted to the outside of the human body with a lower frequencysignal, for example, a low frequency signal of 10 MHz.

FIG. 5 illustrates a method and system for data communication withrespect to a body, for example, the human body, in accordance with anexemplary embodiment.

As shown in FIG. 5, a method for data communication with respect to aliving body such as the human body may be utilized by a portable device200 and/or a peripheral device 300. As a non-limiting illustration only,the portable device 200 may be a content player such as an MP3 Player, acellular phone, a Portable Media Player (PMP), and/or a navigationdevice, etc., As a non-limiting illustration only, the peripheral device300 may be a headset, an earset, an earphone, and/or a visual visor,etc.,

FIGS. 6 a through 6 c illustrate an exemplary portable device 200 towhich a method for data communication with respect to a living body isapplied in accordance with an exemplary embodiment.

As shown in FIGS. 6 a-6 c, the portable device 200 comprises a body 210for housing components (not shown) such as a circuitry and/or a batterytherein. For example, an upper surface or a front surface of theportable device 200 may be provided with a display unit 211, and aninterfacing unit 212 for receiving an input from a user.

Two or more transmitting electrodes 253 and 254 may be formed at a rearsurface of the portable device 200.

Referring to FIG. 6 a, the two or more transmitting electrodes 253 and254 may be implemented in the form of clips. Here, the clips may beformed of synthetic resins, and the transmitting electrodes 253 and 254may be formed by plating (or coating) a conductive material on theclips.

In FIG. 6 a, the two transmitting electrodes 253 and 254 are disposed ona rear surface of the portable device 200 in the form of clips. However,where the two transmitting electrodes 253 and 254 are electricallyisolated from each other with a sufficient distance therebetween, thetwo transmitting electrodes 253 and 254 may be formed on an outersurface of the portable device 200 in any shape.

Referring to FIGS. 6 b and 6 c, the two transmitting electrodes 253 and254 may be protruding from a rear surface of the portable device 200 soas to easily contact the living body. Here, the portable device 200 mayinclude bands 261 and 262 by which the portable device 200 may beremovably fixed to the living body.

As shown in FIG. 6 b, each of the two transmitting electrodes 253 and254 may be implemented as two circles and one straight line connectingthe two circles. The two transmitting electrodes 253 and 254 may bespaced from each other with a distance therebetween so as to easilycontact even a curved portion of the living body.

As shown in FIG. 6 c, each of the transmitting electrodes 253 and 254may be formed to have an ‘L’ shape so as to increase the contact area.Here, the transmitting electrodes 253 and 254 may be formed in differentdirections so as to maintain a sufficient distance therebetween.

FIG. 7 illustrates an exemplary peripheral device 300 to which a methodfor data communication with respect to a living body is applied inaccordance with an exemplary embodiment.

As shown in FIG. 7, the peripheral device 300, e.g., the headset 300comprises one or more speakers 312 and 313, and two receiving electrodes321 and 322 provided to contact the living body. The receivingelectrodes 321 and 322 may be a conductive material.

FIG. 8 illustrates an internal construction of the portable device 200of FIG. 6 according to an exemplary embodiment.

As shown in FIG. 8, the portable device 200 comprises a display unit 211for displaying a content, an interfacing unit (or button unit) 212 forreceiving a user's manipulation, a controller 221, a memory (or a datastorage) 222, a power source 223, a sound output unit 230, a datainput/output unit 240, and a transmitting unit 250.

The controller 221 comprises an encoder/decoder for decoding a soundsource and/or image signals of a content stored in the memory 222 tothereby output the content, or encoding a sound source and/or imagesignals of an inputted content to thereby store the content in thememory 222.

The sound output unit 230 comprises a D/A converter 231 for convertingdigital signals into analogue signals, for example, the digital signalscorresponding to the sound source of the content being decoded, a soundoutputting unit 232 for outputting the converted analogue signals assound, and a connector 233 for providing a connection to, for example,an earphone and/or a headset.

The data input/output unit 240 comprises a Universal Serial Bus (UBS)controller 241 and a USB connector 242.

The transmitting unit 250 comprises a digital modulator 252 formodulating digital signals decoded by the controller 221, a currentlimiting circuit 252 for limiting a current of the modulated digitalsignals to a predetermined value, for example, to have a value harmlessor tolerable to the living body, and two transmitting electrodes 253 and254.

The digital modulator 252 modulates the digital signals such that a plusor “1” is represented as a first state when the first transmittingelectrode has a higher electric potential and the second transmittingelectrode has a lower electric potential, and a negative or “0” isrepresented as a second state when the first transmitting electrode hasa lower electric potential and the second transmitting electrode has ahigher electric potential. The current limiting circuit 252 limits thecurrent of the modulated digital signals to the predetermined value,thereby to supply a conduction current from the transmitting electrodehaving higher electric potential to the body, so that the conductioncurrent in form of digital flows through the surface of the body backinto the inside of the body and sinks the conduction current to thetransmitting electrode having lower electric potential.

FIG. 9 illustrates an internal construction of the peripheral device 300of FIG. 7 according to an exemplary embodiment.

As shown in FIG. 9, the peripheral device 300, e.g., the headset 300comprises one or more speakers 312 and 313, a sound outputting unit 311for applying electric signals to the speakers 312 and 313, and areceiving unit 320.

The receiving unit 320 comprises first and second receiving electrodes321 and 322 for receiving digital electric signals corresponding to atleast one of a sound source and image(s) of content, and a signalprocessor 323.

The signal processor 323 comprises an amplifier 324 for amplifyingdigital electric signals received through the first and second receivingelectrodes 321 and 322, a bandwidth pass filter 325 for extractingdigital baseband signals from the amplified digital electric signals, acomparator 326 for converting the digital baseband signals to signals ofa predetermined voltage, a controller 327 for dividing image signals andsound source signals from each other from the digital signals, and a D/Aconverter 328 for converting the sound source signals of the digitalsignals into analogue signals.

The sound source signals converted into the analogue signals areoutputted to the speakers 312 and 313 through the sound outputting unit311.

As shown, the peripheral device 300 may further comprise a display unit330. The controller 327 displays the images of the content by providingthe image signals of the digital signals to the display unit 300.

FIG. 10 illustrates a method for data communication with respect to aliving body in accordance with an exemplary embodiment.

As shown in FIG. 10, a method for data communication with respect to aliving body may be applied to a security system, e.g., a dooropening/closing system. As shown, a transmitting device (or an accessrequesting device) 400 comes in contact with the living body, forexample, the human body, and a receiving device 500 is mounted to adoor. One or more electronic keys may be stored in the transmittingdevice 400, and the transmitting device 400 includes two transmittingelectrodes. The receiving device 500 includes receiving electrodes 500that may come into contact with the living body, for example, throughthe hands of the user. The electronic keys of the transmitting device400 may be transmitted to the receiving device 500 through the livingbody by the transmitting device 400, thereby opening and closing thesecurity system, i.e., the door.

FIG. 11 illustrates an implementation of the embodiment of FIG. 10according to an exemplary embodiment.

FIG. 11 shows the transmitting device 400 and the receiving device 500.

The transmitting device 400 comprises an electronic key storage unit410, an encrypting unit 420, an encoding unit 430, a switching circuit440, a current limiting circuit 450, two transmitting electrodes 451 and452, an oscillating circuit 460, and a controller 470.

Electronic keys stored in the electronic key storage unit 410 are drawnout by the controller 470, and are encrypted by the encrypting unit 420.The encrypted electronic keys are outputted as encoded signals by theencoding unit 430. The encoded signals are modulated by the switchingcircuit 440 so as to be outputted to the current limiting circuit 450.The current limiting circuit 450 adjusts the signals to a current havinga predetermined value, for example, signals not having a current valuethat is harmful to the living body, and outputs the adjusted signals tothe transmitting electrodes 451 and 452. The outputted current flows tothe receiving device 500 through the living body.

In more detail, the switching circuit 440 modulates the encoded signalssuch that a plus or “1” is represented as a first state when the firsttransmitting electrode has a higher electric potential and the secondtransmitting electrode has a lower electric potential, and a negative or“0” is represented as a second state when the first transmittingelectrode has a lower electric potential and the second transmittingelectrode has a higher electric potential. And, the current limitingcircuit 450 limits the current of the encoded signals to thepredetermined value, thereby to supply a conduction current from thetransmitting electrode having higher electric potential to the body, sothat the conduction current in form of digital flows through the surfaceof the body back into the inside of the body and sinks the conductioncurrent to the transmitting electrode having lower electric potential.

As shown, the receiving device 500 comprises two receiving electrodes511 and 512, an amplifier 520, a bandwidth pass filter 530, a comparator540, a decoding unit 550, a decrypting unit 560, and a controller 570.

A current is received through the two receiving electrodes 511 and 512,and the received current is amplified by the amplifier 520. Then, thereceived current passes through the bandwidth pass filter 530, therebychanging into baseband signals. The changed baseband signals areconverted into predetermined voltages by the comparator 540, and decodedand/or decrypted by the decoding unit 550 and/or the decrypting unit560, thereby being outputted to the controller 570. The controller 570reads the decrypted signals, and checks whether the read signals areconsistent with pre-stored electronic keys, thereby outputting controlsignals for controlling opening/closing of a door.

Since certain embodiments disclosed above uses a low frequency andcurrent instead of a high frequency through antenna, when communicatingwith a sensor in the human body, it may reduce power consumption andattenuation in the human body, have little to no effect on externalinterference, and/or cause little to no damage to the human body. Sincea signal is transmitted using voltage polarity, it may be strong tonoise, and accordingly, receiving sensitivity may be improved.

In addition, a sensor in accordance with certain embodiments disclosedabove may not need a radio transmitter and antenna, and also may notneed an additional memory because it processes video signalssequentially along the passage of time. Accordingly, a small-sized andlow-priced capsule type endoscope may be provided.

It is understood that while a method for data communication has beendisclosed with respect to the human body, it is not limited thereto, andthat the certain methods, apparatuses, and/or systems described abovemay be applied accordingly to a body other than the human body, forexample, to an animal body.

The methods described above may be recorded, stored, or fixed in one ormore computer readable media that includes program instructions to beimplemented by a computer to cause a processor to execute or perform theprogram instructions. The media may also include, alone or incombination with the program instructions, data files, data structures,and the like. Examples of computer-readable media include magneticmedia, such as hard disks, floppy disks, and magnetic tape; opticalmedia such as CD ROM disks and DVDs; magneto-optical media, such asoptical disks; and hardware devices that are specially configured tostore and perform program instructions, such as read-only memory (ROM),random access memory (RAM), flash memory, and the like. Examples ofprogram instructions include both machine code, such as produced by acompiler, and files containing higher level code that may be executed bythe computer using an interpreter. The described hardware devices may beconfigured to act as one or more software modules in order to performthe operations and methods described above.

A number of exemplary embodiments have been described above.Nevertheless, it will be understood that various modifications may bemade. For example, suitable results may be achieved if the describedtechniques are performed in a different order and/or if components in adescribed system, architecture, device, or circuit are combined in adifferent manner and/or replaced or supplemented by other components ortheir equivalents. Accordingly, other implementations are within thescope of the following claims.

1. A portable device for data communication using a body as a conductorto transmit data to a receiver, the portable device comprising: acontroller unit to control processing of data to be transmitted; acurrent limiting circuit to limit a current of a signal corresponding tothe data to be transmitted to a predetermined value; and transmittingelectrodes connected to the current limiting circuit and contacted withthe body to generate electric potential difference therebetween, so thatthe signal having the current of predetermined value flows from thetransmitting electrode having higher electric potential through the bodyto the receiver and sinks to the transmitting electrode having lowerelectric potential.
 2. The portable device of claim 1, wherein thesignal is transmitted by controlling a voltage polarity of thetransmitting electrodes.
 3. The portable device of claim 1, wherein thenumber of the transmitting electrodes are at least two.
 4. The portabledevice of claim 1, further comprising: a data storage to store the data;and an interfacing unit to interface with a user.
 5. The portable deviceof claim 4, wherein: the data stored in the data storage is video and/oraudio data, and the portable device is one of a sound player, an MP3player, a cellular phone, a portable media player, and a navigationdevice.
 6. The portable device of claim 4, further comprising: a displayunit to display content corresponding to the data stored in the datastorage; a sound output unit to convert the signal decoded by thecontroller unit to an analog signal; and a power source, wherein thedata receiving unit comprises a universal serial bus controller and auniversal serial bus connector to receive the data.
 7. The portabledevice of claim 4, wherein each of the transmitting electrodes isdisposed on a rear surface of the portable device in the form of a clip,an ‘L’ shaped electrode, or a curved surfaced electrode.
 8. The portabledevice of claim 1, further comprising a data storage to store the data,wherein the data stored in the data storage corresponds to an electronickey, and the transmitting electrodes transmits a signal corresponding tothe electronic key having a current of the predetermined value to gainaccess controlled by the receiver.
 9. The portable device of claim 8,further comprising: an encryption unit to encrypt the electronic key; anencoding unit to encode the encrypted electronic key; and a switchingcircuit to modulate the encoded electronic key to output to the currentlimiting circuit.
 10. The portable device of claim 1, wherein the bodyis a human body.
 11. A receiver for receiving data communicated using abody as a conductor to transmit the date, the receiver comprising:receiving electrodes to contact the body to receive a signalcorresponding to the data; and a signal processor to process the signalreceived through the receiving electrodes, wherein the signal has acurrent defined to a predetermined value.
 12. The receiver of claim 11,wherein: the receiver is a peripheral device to output a reproductionsignal corresponding to video and/or audio data, the processed signalcorresponds to an output obtained from reproducing the video and/oraudio data, and the peripheral device further comprises an output unitto output the signal from the signal processor.
 13. The receiver ofclaim 12, wherein the peripheral device is one of a headset, an earset,an earphone, a visual visor, and a combination thereof.
 14. The receiverof claim 12, wherein the output unit comprises at least one of: a soundoutputting unit to output sound corresponding to the signal; and adisplay unit to output an image corresponding to the signal.
 15. Thereceiver of claim 14, wherein the signal processor comprises: anamplifier to amplify the signal received through the receivingelectrodes; a bandwidth pass filter to extract a baseband signal fromthe amplified signal; a comparator to convert the baseband signal to asignal of a predetermined voltage; and a controller unit to divide theconverted signal and output the divided signals to the output unit. 16.The receiver of claim 11, wherein: the data corresponds to an electronickey, and the receiver further comprises a controller to control accessbased on the signal received through the receiving electrodes.
 17. Thereceiver of claim 16, wherein the signal processor comprises: anamplifier to amplify the signal received through the receivingelectrodes; a bandwidth pass filter to convert the amplified signal to abaseband signal; a comparator to convert the baseband signal to a signalof a predetermined voltage; a decoding unit to decode the signal of apredetermined voltage; and a decrypting unit to decrypt the decodedsignal to output to the controller.
 18. A method of communicating datawirelessly using a body as a conductor to transmit the data from aportable device to a receiver, the method comprising: controllingtransmitting electrodes of the portable device to generate electricpotential difference between the transmitting electrodes according tothe data to be transmitted, wherein the transmitting electrodes contactthe body and the body contacts receiving electrodes of the receiver;limiting a current of the transmitting electrodes to a predeterminedvalue; and supplying the current from the transmitting electrode havinghigher electric potential to the body so that the current flows in formof digital through the surface of the body to the receiving electrodesof the receiver and sinks to the transmitting electrode having lowerelectric potential.
 19. The method of claim 18, wherein the controllingof the transmitting electrodes allows a voltage polarity of thetransmitting electrodes to be changed according to the data to betransmitted.
 20. The method of claim 18, wherein: the data to betransmitted is one of video and/or audio data and an electronic key, andthe portable device is one of a sound player, an MP3 player, a cellularphone, a portable media player, a navigation device, and an accessrequesting device.